The engine stalled, and for a few, breathless moments, the silence of space invaded the little shuttle. The momentum pressed us forward, and we drifted through the quiet, watchful stars. Then, with a fiery burp, the craft lurched forward. Noise, the dull din of the engine, filled our ears, and the little crew sighed.
It was one of those moments hardly remembered. I’m sure the captain put it in his log. I know the engineers had at the craft afterwards. Yet, now and again, I think back to that moment. Not as violent as a hull breach, not to our bodies. It was a sort of breach, though, with an effect upon our souls, at least, upon mine. Maybe the common man has no soul. It is bred out of him or indoctrinated away. But I knew in the silence of space…
Tale Told 